NAVAL AIR SYSTEMS COMMAND, PATUXENT RIVER, Md. — Impressive, vital, indispensable, key, phenomenal, flawless, outstanding, role models and consummate professionals are just a few of the ways program customers described their business financial managers when nominating them for the sixth annual AIR-7.8 Headquarters Award for Excellence in Financial Management Service.

Established in 2011 and celebrated Oct. 13—along with the Navy’s 241st birthday—the award acknowledges those BFMs who focus on customer and program needs to find new methods of meeting or exceeding customer and program expectations. The award also acknowledges an individual’s efforts in improving customer service and promoting quality of work life.

“How many ways are there to say excellent?” said Todd Washington, director, Program and Business Analysis Department, during the ceremony at the River’s Edge Catering and Conference Center at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.

“Being nominated is a big honor,” said Washington, a 2012 nominee. “It shows you are well-respected by your program, your colleagues and your boss.”

Washington heralded each of the 11 nominees in the BFM category and 10 in the lead BFM category with walk-up songs and album covers as they accepted their award from Steve Cricchi, assistant commander, Corporate Operations and Total Force.

“One of my goals when I got to 7.0 was to increase the sense of community within our Corporate Operations competency. One way to do that is by celebrating and sharing our successes. Your department, and this event, is a model that we should replicate across our organization," Cricchi said.

Joyce Cole, supporting the Advanced Tactical Aircraft Protection Systems program, received the lead BFM award, in part, for her “flawless coordination of funding that ensured the warfighter could defeat the threat.”

Cole attributes her success to her years of experience, lessons learned from failures, competency leadership and her teammates in the program office and at Fleet Readiness Center Southeast in Jacksonville, Florida.

“It is indeed an honor to be recognized, and it is greatly appreciated,” Cole said. “All the lead BFMs are already exceptional, but if I had to give words of advice, they would be to always keep the lines of communication open, be fair amongst all and encourage and inspire your team to go forth to acquire skills that will carry them into the future.”

Cole’s role model is Stacy Washington, a former NAVAIR lead BFM, who Cole admires “for her vision (accomplishments), her courage (challenges), her integrity (truthfulness), her humility (self-confidence and self-awareness), her strategic planning (anticipating trends), her focus (strength in others) and her cooperation (getting people to work with you because they want to).”

She is also proud of her current team of financial managers, accepting this award on behalf of her team, she said. “This is one of the best teams that I've worked with during my extended career at NAVAIR. It takes us all working together to support the warfighters to accomplish the mission and goals,” Cole said.

Another accomplished BFM is Lucy Perini, who received the award in the BFM category.

Described by her customers as the “gold standard” for Foreign Military Sales (FMS) financial management, Perini supports the Harpoon Missile FMS program, and is the first FMS BFM to win the award.

Perini attributes her work ethic and willingness to go above and beyond to her upbringing. “I grew up in an age where things weren’t as easy or accessible as they are today. My parents are the hardest working people I know, and have been great role models. After seeing how hard they have worked all their life this drives me to want to do better,” Perini said.

When asked if she had any advice on team work, Perini said, “The type of work we do requires a team effort. My advice to other BFMs is to communicate with each other. Always be willing to lend a hand within your organization when needed.

“At the end of the day, we are all on the same side and working toward a mutual goal. It’s very important for us to learn and grow with each other,” Perini said.